Firefighters tackling major blaze on Edinburgh's Princes Street

Firefighters are tackling a large blaze which broke out at a building on Edinburgh's Princes Street in the early hours.

Crews were sent to the scene at the old Debenhams building about 02:50 with seven fire engines and three specialist vehicles.

The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service said the incident was still ongoing.

Police are on the scene.

Trams in the area have been disrupted, with services running part route from Edinburgh Airport to the west end only.

Edinburgh Trams said tickets will be accepted by ScotRail between Edinburgh Gateway and Edinburgh Waverley and on Lothian bus services between West End and Newhaven.

Lothian Buses said a number of services had been diverted.

Debenhams closed in May 2021 following a large fire that April.

In 2021, Legal and General planned a £50m revamp of the building including a 207-room boutique hotel and "hospitality hub", but this fell through.

The old department store site was then bought by Criterion Capital, the development company headed up by billionaire Asif Aziz.

He planned to turn it into a Zedwell hotel, which would be the first in Scotland if successful.